New York State
Non-Credit Distance Learning
Course Criteria Guide
This document is provided under a contractual agreement between the
New York State Office of Children and Family Services
Division of Administration
Bureau of Training and Development
AND
Professional Development Program
Rockefeller College of Public Affairs & Policy
University at Albany
through
The Research Foundation for The State University of New York
Acknowledgement
This material was developed by the Professional Development Program, Rockefeller College of Public Affairs
& Policy, University at Albany, through The Research Foundation for The State University of New York, under a
training and administrative services agreement with the New York State Office of Children and Family Services.
Disclaimer
While every effort has been made to provide accurate and complete information, the Office of Children and
Family Services and the State of New York assumes no responsibility for any errors or omissions in the information provided here and makes no representations or warranties about the suitability of the information contained here for any purpose. All information and documents are provided “as is,” without a warranty of any kind.
Copyright © 2016 by The New York State Office of Children and Family Services
New York State
Non-Credit Distance Learning
Course Criteria Guide
Table of Contents
Preface ..........................................................................................................................................................................1
Introduction ..................................................................................................................................................................1
What Qualifies as “Distance Learning”? ....................................................................................................................1
Who Is Affected by This Guide? ................................................................................................................................2
Courses Affected by the Review Process ..................................................................................................................2
Courses in Languages Other than English ................................................................................................................2
How to Use This Guide ..............................................................................................................................................2
Adult Learning Principles and Training Practices ....................................................................................................3
How Are Adult Learners Different? ............................................................................................................................3
Distance Learning Criteria ..........................................................................................................................................4
Meeting Distance Learning Criteria ............................................................................................................................7
New York State Compliance ......................................................................................................................................7
Course Orientation...................................................................................................................................................10
Course Interface ......................................................................................................................................................12
Language .................................................................................................................................................................15
Goals and Objectives...............................................................................................................................................16
Course Content........................................................................................................................................................17
Instructional Design and Learning Activities ............................................................................................................18
Using the Technology to Advantage ........................................................................................................................22
Assessment .............................................................................................................................................................26
Evaluation ................................................................................................................................................................27
Distance Learning Review Process ..........................................................................................................................28
Step-by-Step: Completing the Course Submission & Verification Process ..............................................................29
What If I Need to Save a Course Incrementally and Come Back Later to Finish and Submit?................................37
What Happens After I Submit a Course? .................................................................................................................39
Distance Learning Organizational or Course Changes and Renewal ...................................................................40
Appendix A: Attestation for Translated Courses ....................................................................................................42
Professional Development Program ♦ New York State Non-Credit Distance Learning Course Criteria Guide (rev Apr 2016)
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Preface
This New York State Non-Credit Distance Learning Course Criteria Guide is an online tool for distance learning
training organizations and developers to ensure that their distance learning courses meet the New York State (NYS)
Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS) training requirements for child day care providers. These criteria
foster course content that helps child day care providers improve the quality of care they offer to children in their
programs. Individuals who complete distance learning courses that meet these criteria can apply their training hours
from such courses to New York State’s biannual 30-hour regulatory training requirement for child care providers.
Courses meeting the criteria and approved by OCFS may also qualify for Educational Incentive Program (EIP)
funding.
OCFS has contracted with the Professional Development Program (PDP) to administer the distance learning review
process. The process described in this guide—including the course criteria—ensures a standard of quality in
non-credit bearing distance learning course development that benefits NYS early childhood professionals. This
process also provides an effective and efficient manner for reviewing distance learning coursework.
Introduction
What Qualifies as “Distance Learning”?
Distance learning is an alternative way to obtain training which many individuals find beneficial. This training model
includes online training as well as correspondence courses. Distance learning offers students an opportunity to
complete training at their own pace, at a convenient time, and without needing to commute to a training site.
For the purposes of reviewing Non-Credit Distance Learning courses, a Distance Learning professional development
experience is defined as:
An asynchronous professional development program (paper or computer) accessed by the learner without
the presence of a live instructor and used at the learner’s convenience in terms of time and location.
NOTE: Blended learning has a live instructor involved and should be treated as classroom training, as the
outcome of the learner is considered by an instructor, not exclusively by the online portion of the program.
OCFS’ Division of Child Care Services developed Policy Statement 15-5: Distance Learning about the use of
distance learning courses to satisfy OCFS training requirements. Non-credit bearing distance learning courses need
to be reviewed and approved before child care providers can apply this training to their OCFS training requirement.
(Please note: Since this policy statement was last revised, the license/registration period has increased from two
years to four years, but child care providers must still complete 30 hours of training every two years.)
To meet OCFS requirements, non-credit bearing distance learning courses that are completed either online or via
correspondence must have the potential for valid interaction between the content specialist and the student. The
potential for valid interaction means that the student must have the ability to contact an instructor or content specialist
by phone, e-mail or in person to discuss training materials. Courses need to include some form of documentation
(e.g., completion certificate) indicating successful course completion that child care providers can submit to OCFS.
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Who Is Affected by This Guide?
The information in this guide affects training organizations and course developers offering non-credit bearing
distance learning (online or correspondence) courses to New York State child day care providers who want to
complete such a course to meet their OCFS training requirement.
Courses Affected by the Review Process
Since credit-bearing courses are already accredited by a recognized accrediting organization, only non-credit bearing
online or correspondence courses are required to go through the review process to be considered for NYS child day
care training credit or Educational Incentive Program (EIP) scholarship funding.
Courses that were already approved under previous NYS OCFS distance learning review criteria will remain eligible
for EIP funding and NYS child day care training credit until January 1, 2017—two (2) years after the new review
process went into effect on January 1, 2015. Training organizations must resubmit their non-credit bearing courses
under the new process to have those courses reapproved. Courses approved under the new review criteria will
remain approved for a period of three (3) years.
Courses in Languages Other than English
Courses that are offered in languages other than English will be considered for approval only if they are direct
translations of English language courses that have also been reviewed and approved. The Training Organization in
this situation would also be required to submit and abide by a signed attestation (see Appendix A: Attestation for
Translated Courses on page 42), verifying that the course offered in a language other than English contains the exact
content, exercises, assignments, exams/tests/quizzes, materials, and evaluations as the corresponding English
language course. If any changes are made to the English language course, the training organization also agrees to
make the corresponding changes to the course offered in any languages other than English.
How to Use This Guide
The full list of review criteria begins on page 4 of this guide. A detailed explanation of each criterion starts on page 7.
Each criterion in the list also links to its corresponding detailed explanation, including examples, where needed.
Step-by-step instructions for submitting distance learning courses for review begin on page 29. A description of the
course renewal procedure begins on page 40.
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Adult Learning Principles and Training Practices
How Are Adult Learners Different?
Distance learning courses submitted for review should reflect adult learning principles and training practices. Unlike
child learners, who depend overwhelmingly on adult planning, direction, and guidance throughout the learning
process, adult learners are typically autonomous and self-directed. Adults also bring their life experience and
knowledge to the learning experience, and seek to incorporate newly gained information into their existing skills and
knowledge. Adults are most interested in learning information and/or skills that have immediate relevance to their
jobs and lives, and seek challenges that move them to increasingly advanced stages of personal development.
Adults are practical learners and approach learning from a problem-solving orientation, rather than being content
oriented.
Jane Vella’s Learning to Listen, Learning to Teach: The Power of Dialogue in Educating Adults (Jossey-Bass,
publishers, San Francisco, 1997) notes nine principles and practices for effective adult education:

Relevance: Teaching should be relevant to learners’ lives and experiences.

Dialogue: Learning should be a two-way street between the learners and the teacher.

Engagement: Learners’ attention should be engaged through discussion and learning from peers.

Immediacy: Learners should be able to apply the teaching immediately.

The 20/40/80 rule: Learners typically remember 20% of what they hear; 40% of what they hear and see; and
80% of what they hear, see, and do.

Cognitive, Affective and Psychomotor interaction: Learning should involve thinking and emotions as well as
doing.

Respect: Learners need to feel respected like equals.

Affirmation: Learners need to receive affirmation of their efforts through genuine praise and constructive
feedback.

Safety: Learners need to feel that others value their contributions and will not belittle or ridicule them.
It can be a challenge to incorporate adult learning principles into online courses. Developers need to keep as many of
these principles in mind when determining the level of content, inclusion of exercises and case studies, and
evaluation methodologies for an online training. We strongly suggest that developers consider collaborating with
content specialists for effective content delivery.
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Distance Learning Criteria
The Distance Learning Review Process involves as many as 26 criteria:

16 required criteria, all of which must be met to continue the review process; and

10 optional criteria (8 optional criteria for correspondence courses), at least five (5) of which must be met to
continue the review process.
Ref
Criterion
#
New York State Compliance
1 Content presented is consistent with nationally recognized practices for high quality in the
operation of children’s programs, program planning, and personnel management. This
includes images, animations, and other media that illustrate concepts and procedures being
taught.
Required/
Optional
Required
Note: Substantial New York State regulatory inconsistencies will require revision to be
considered for approval. Inconsequential New York State regulatory inconsistencies (text
and/or graphics) may still be approved, provided the following disclaimer is included in the
course:
“This course reflects the regulations of the State/Commonwealth of
____________________. No information in this course supersedes any state
regulations you need to follow. You must consult your state’s regulations when
developing policies and procedures Regulations for all states are accessible on the
National Resource Center for Health and Safety in Child Care and Early Education
(NRC) website. Click on the link provided to view regulations in your state.”
If the disclaimer is allowed and included, and the course is approved, it will be listed on the
website as “Approved”.
Course Orientation
2 Contact references (e-mail or phone) for:
 assistance with course content, registration or completion questions
 technical support (course hardware/software requirements)
3 A brief description of the course is provided, including a goal and learning objectives and/or
outcomes.
4 Requirements for course completion are clearly provided to include:
 completion of all activities
 knowledge assessment
 hours of training
 New York State training topics credited
 a certificate issued to learners upon successful completion
5 Date on which the course was created or last updated is visible.
Course Interface
6 Course pages/screen
 are visually and functionally consistent
 linked to previous page, topic or unit, and to the beginning of the course
 contain a link to assistance
 include headers or footers identifying where the learner is in the course
Required
Required
Required
Optional
Required
Professional Development Program ♦ New York State Non-Credit Distance Learning Course Criteria Guide (rev Apr 2016)
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Ref
Criterion
#
7 Navigation elements (buttons/icons/links) are where learners expect to find them and are
used consistently throughout the course.
8 The learner can log out and log back into the last page viewed.
9 A glossary of terms is provided
Language
10 The language and writing style is clear and direct, and includes the following:
 abbreviations and symbols are defined
 instructions are stated simply and are easy to understand
 spelling, grammar and punctuation are accurate
 no explicit or implicit bias relative to age, culture, ethnicity, race, gender identity,
sexual orientation, or family unit composition
 sentences are short and paragraphs brief
 a conversational tone is used and addresses the second person
 verbs are in the active, not passive voice
Goals and Objectives
11 Goals and objectives are:
 clearly stated
 relevant to the subject matter
 applicable to the child care setting
 reasonably achievable within the course framework
12 Objectives are measurable and related to course knowledge, skills, competencies,
behaviors, and/or attitudes.
Course Content
13 Content must:
 be directly related to the learning objectives
 be accurate, relevant and up-to-date
 reflect the value of diversity, uniqueness, and abilities of all children and families
14 Course must provide:
 content and learning experiences needed to achieve the learning objectives
 professional, relevant, and current resources beyond the course material to
encourage continued exploration
15 Course is illustrated by examples and/or case studies when new information is presented.
Instructional Design and Learning Activities
16 Instructional strategies are varied and appropriate for adult learners and learning styles.
17 Course is self-paced, and units, subunits, subtopics or other logical sequence may be
repeated as necessary.
18 Activities include:
 constructive and timely feedback
 clarification, elaboration, and transfer of knowledge
 application of concepts
19 Activities encourage and promote critical thinking and higher-order reasoning abilities.
Using the Technology to Advantage
20 A variety of relevant multimedia elements are used to engage learners and accommodate
different learning styles.
21 Wikis, blogs, social networks, and other technologies are used in appropriate and relevant
ways to capture learner knowledge and experience, and encourage information exchange
and collaboration among learners.
Required/
Optional
Optional*
Optional*
Optional
Required
Required
Required
Required
Required
Optional
Required
Required
Required
Optional
Optional
Optional
Professional Development Program ♦ New York State Non-Credit Distance Learning Course Criteria Guide (rev Apr 2016)
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Ref
Criterion
#
Assessment
22 Multiple opportunities for self-assessment are provided
23 All assessments:
 are tied to learning objectives
 provide timely feedback
24 Final assessment is unique; does not duplicate prior learning activities or self-assessments.
Evaluation
25 An evaluation is provided to measure learner satisfaction of the course.
26 A mechanism is provided to solicit learner input.
*Not applicable for correspondence courses
Required/
Optional
Optional
Required
Required
Required
Optional
The next section looks at each of these criteria in detail, to help training organizations and content developers meet
those criteria.
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Meeting Distance Learning Criteria
New York State Compliance
1. Content presented is consistent with nationally recognized practices for high quality in
the operation of children’s programs, program planning, and personnel management.
This includes images, animations, and other media that illustrate concepts and
procedures being taught.
[REQUIRED]
Note: Substantial New York State regulatory inconsistencies will require revision to be
considered for approval. Inconsequential New York State regulatory inconsistencies
(text and/or graphics) may still be approved, provided the following disclaimer is
included in the course:
“This course reflects the regulations of the State/Commonwealth of
____________________. No information in this course supersedes any state
regulations you need to follow. You must consult your state’s regulations when
developing policies and procedures Regulations for all states are accessible on the
National Resource Center for Health and Safety in Child Care and Early Education
(NRC) website. Click on the link provided to view regulations in your state.”
If the disclaimer is allowed and included, and the course is approved, it will be listed on
the website as “Approved”.
NYS Social Services Law §390 and the NYS OCFS Child Day Care Regulations establish the minimum standards of
care for regulated child care programs in New York. In addition, OCFS’ Division of Child Care Services periodically
issues policy statements to clarify the interpretation of the regulations for consistency. The statute, regulations, and
policy statements are available from the OCFS website.
Document
URL
NYS Social Services Law §390
http://ocfs.ny.gov/main/childcare/390%20Social%20Services%20Law
.doc
NYS OCFS Child Day Care Regulations –
Part 413 (Definitions)
http://ocfs.ny.gov/main/childcare/regs/413%20effective%206.1.15.pdf
NYS OCFS Child Day Care Regulations –
Part 414 (School-Age Child Care)
http://ocfs.ny.gov/main/childcare/regs/414%20SACC%20effective%2
06.1.15.pdf
NYS OCFS Child Day Care Regulations –
Part 416 (Group Family Day Care)
http://ocfs.ny.gov/main/childcare/regs/416%20GFDC%20effective%2
05.1.14.pdf
(Table continued on next page)
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Document
URL
(Table continued from previous page)
NYS OCFS Child Day Care Regulations –
Part 417 (Family Day Care)
http://ocfs.ny.gov/main/childcare/regs/417%20FDC%20effective%20
5.1.14.pdf
NYS OCFS Child Day Care Regulations –
Part 418-1 (Day Care Centers)
http://ocfs.ny.gov/main/childcare/regs/4181%20DCC%20effective%206.1.15.pdf
NYS OCFS Child Day Care Regulations –
Part 418-2 (Small Day Care Centers)
http://ocfs.ny.gov/main/childcare/regs/4182%20SDDC%20effective%206.1.15.pdf
OCFS Division of Child Care Services
(DCCS) Policy Statements
http://ocfs.ny.gov/main/childcare/daycare_policies.asp
Additional sources for information may also need to be heeded. For example, the child day care regulations for each
modality of care indicate that “Outdoor equipment such as swings, slides and climbing apparatus must be installed
and used in accordance with the manufacturer’s specifications and instructions…”; it should be noted that outdoor
play equipment manufacturer’s instructions include information about proper surfacing, which complies with ASTM
International Standards. Providers can also meet this requirement by following the surfacing guidelines in the
Consumer Product Safety Commission’s Public Playground Safety Handbook, available online at
www.cpsc.gov/PageFiles/122149/325.pdf. New Day Care Centers or Day Care Centers with newly constructed
playgrounds and those substantially modified after July 2007 must be in compliance with the CPSC guidelines in the
Public Playground Safety Handbook. However, home-based child care programs (Family Day Care and Group
Family Day Care) are not required to comply with the CPSC guidelines in the handbook; they are required only to
provide a cushioned surface under outdoor play equipment. (Grass and dirt do not count as cushioned surfaces.)
In addition to course content, photographs and illustrations used in courses must also be compliant with NYS OCFS
Child Day Care Regulations, except where such photographs and illustrations are specifically used (and clearly
noted) to demonstrate inappropriate practice.
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Here are a few examples of photos that illustrate various aspects of child care programs; the photos on the left are
compliant with the NYS OCFS Child Day Care Regulations; the photos on the right are not. Explanations are
provided below each photo.
Example A: Photos showing outdoor play equipment like swings, slides and climbing aparatus
Acceptable
Not acceptable
The NYS OCFS Child Day Care Regulations for Day Care
Centers require outdoor play equipment to be installed in
accordance with manufacturer instructions, which include
ASTM international standards for appropriate surfacing.
Appropriate surfacing includes mulch and pea gravel at
appropriate depths.
While home-based (Family Day Care and Group Family Day
Care) programs are not required to follow ASTM standards for
appropriate surfacing, they are required to provide a cushioned
surface under outdoor play equipment. Grass and dirt are not
considered proper surfacing to protect children when using
outdoor play equipment.
Example B: Photos illustrating summer outdoor waterplay
Acceptable
Sprinklers make a developmentally appropriate and
regulatory-compliant option for outdoor water play in hot
summer months.
Not acceptable
The NYS OCFS Child Day Care Regulations for all modalities of
care specifically prohibit the use of fill-and-drain wading pools.
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Course Orientation
2. All courses must include e-mail or telephone contact information so learners can
obtain assistance with course content, registration or completion questions, as well as
technical support for course-related hardware and/or software issues that learners
might encounter. This information should be easily accessible to learners.
[REQUIRED]
3. Courses must also include a brief description of the course content, including a goal
and learning objectives/outcomes. Learning objectives should be measurable.
(For more information about measurable objectives, see “Goals and Objectives” on
page 16.)
[REQUIRED]
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4. All requirements for course completion must be clearly indicated and include:

completion of all activities;

knowledge assessment;

the number of training hours earned;

New York State training topics addressed; and

a certificate issued to learners upon successful completion.
5. Courses should also clearly indicate the date the course was created or most recently
revised/updated.
[REQUIRED]
[OPTIONAL]
If the course contains multiple errors or instances of non-compliance with the required criteria above, the course may
not be considered to meet the Course Orientation criteria.
Professional Development Program ♦ New York State Non-Credit Distance Learning Course Criteria Guide (rev Apr 2016)
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Course Interface
6. Course pages/screens must:

be visually and functionally consistent;

link to previous page, topic, unit, and beginning of the course (allowing
participants to go back to review work);

contain a link to obtain assistance; and

include headers or footers identifying where the learner is in the course.
[REQUIRED]
For correspondence courses, this required criterion is met by using a consistent page layout that enables learners to
keep track of where they are in a course, including the use of clear headers and/or footers on each page.
Professional Development Program ♦ New York State Non-Credit Distance Learning Course Criteria Guide (rev Apr 2016)
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7. Navigation elements (buttons/icons/links) should be located where learners expect to
find them and be used consistently throughout the course.
8. Courses should allow learners to complete the course incrementally; learners should
be able to log out and log back in to the last page viewed and pick up where they left
off. (Optional except for correspondence courses)
[OPTIONAL]
[OPTIONAL]
(Not applicable to
correspondence courses)
Professional Development Program ♦ New York State Non-Credit Distance Learning Course Criteria Guide (rev Apr 2016)
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9. A glossary of terms should be included.
[OPTIONAL]
If the course contains multiple errors or instances of non-compliance with the required criteria above, the course may
not be considered to meet the Course Interface criteria.
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Language
10. The language and writing style used in the course must be clear and direct, and
include the following:

Abbreviations and symbols are defined.
[For example: Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP),
National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC),
developmentally appropriate practice (DAP)]

Instructions are stated simply and are easy to understand.

Spelling, grammar, and punctuation are accurate.

The course is free of explicit or implicit bias relative to age, culture, ethnicity, race,
gender identity, sexual orientation, or family unit composition.

Sentences are concise and paragraphs are brief.

A conversational tone is used throughout the course and addresses the learner in
the second person.

Verbs are in the active, not passive, voice.
[REQUIRED]
If the course contains multiple errors or instances of non-compliance with the criteria above, the course may not be
considered to meet the Language criteria.
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Goals and Objectives
A course goal conveys the training’s overall purpose, while objectives describe the specific measurable skills and
knowledge that learners must acquire to satisfy the course goal. In addition to the overall course goal and objectives,
module-specific goals and objectives may also be included in a course. A course goal should address how the
learner will change as a result of completing the course—develop new skills, improve existing skills, or acquire new
knowledge, for example.
“Writing Goals and Objectives,” a publication by Northern Illinois University’s Faculty Development and Instructional
Design Center, provides excellent guidance in developing course goals and objectives.
11. Goals and objectives must be clearly stated, relevant to the subject matter, applicable
to the child care setting, and reasonably achievable within the course framework.
[REQUIRED]
12. Objectives must be measurable and related to course knowledge, skills,
competencies, behaviors, and/or attitudes.
[REQUIRED]
Measurable objectives use behavioral verbs:
Examples of behavioral (measurable) verbs
To solve
To describe
To list
To match
To explain
To demonstrate
To rank
To construct
Examples of verbs that are not behavioral
To know
To remember
To understand
To appreciate
To recognize
To comprehend
To develop conceptual thinking
To perceive
Ideally, a complete behavioral training objective contains three specific elements:

Anticipated behavior by the participant as a result of the training (measurable objective)

Condition(s) (which may be implied) under which the expected behavior will occur (where or when)

At least one criterion by which successful achievement of the objective will be measured (multiple
criteria can apply to a single objective)
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For example:
As a result of training, participants will safely adapt art activities with children at various
ages and stages of development.
Behavior:
Adapt art activities
Condition(s):
(implied) on the job, after training program
Criterion:
with children at various ages and stages of development
If the course contains multiple errors or instances of non-compliance with the criteria above, the course may not be
considered to meet the Goals and Objectives criteria.
Course Content
13. Course content must:
 be directly related to the learning objectives;
 be accurate, relevant, and up-to-date; and
 reflect the value of diversity, uniqueness, and abilities of all children and families.
[REQUIRED]
Course content needs to reflect current child care practice and research, such as up-to-date information about
developmentally appropriate practice and infant brain development. Content must support the training course’s
identified measurable learning objectives and must be provided to help learners achieve those learning objectives.
Course content and illustrations need to reflect the diversity of program populations and the inclusion of a broad
range of children and families; this includes reflecting cultural diversity and differently abled children.
14. The course must provide content and learning experiences needed to achieve the
learning objectives; and professional, relevant, and current resources beyond the
course material to encourage continued exploration. These resources could include
hyperlinks to relevant organizations, videos, articles, etc.
[REQUIRED]
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15. Courses should be illustrated by examples and/or case studies when new information
is presented.
[OPTIONAL]
If the course contains multiple errors or instances of non-compliance with the required criteria above, the course may
not be considered to meet the Course Content criteria.
Instructional Design and Learning Activities
One of the greatest challenges in e-learning is creating instructionally sound and engaging content for a remote
audience who cannot interact with each other or an instructor in real time. Enabling their learning requires securing
and keeping their attention, and providing effective instruction and relevant practice.
The primary consideration of interface design for online courses is usability, a quality attribute that assesses how
easy interfaces are to use. International web usability consultant Dr. Jakob Nielsen, who holds a Ph.D. in humancomputer interaction, identifies five (5) quality components for usability goals:

Learnability: How easy is it for users to accomplish basic tasks the first time they encounter the design?

Efficiency: Once users have learned the design, how quickly can they perform tasks?

Memorability: When users return to the design after a period of not using it, how easily can they reestablish
proficiency?

Errors: How many errors do users make, how severe are those errors, and how easily can users recover
from the errors?

Satisfaction: How pleasant is it to use the design?
16. The course must include varied instructional approaches that are appropriate for adult
learners and sufficiently diverse to meet various learning styles: visual, auditory,
and/or kinesthetic. A learning style is an individual’s relatively stable and persistent
pattern of acquiring information and building knowledge when approaching a learning
task. [Howles & Jeong, 2009]

Visual learners tend to work best by using their sense of sight; reading quietly,
watching videos, and understanding charts, diagrams, and other visual aids, are
helpful for these types of learners.

Auditory learners primarily use their sense of hearing to learn; reading aloud,
explaining topics to others, following spoken directions, listening to recordings, or
using mnemonics or rhymes to remember important information tend to be very
effective strategies for auditory learners.

Kinesthetic learners tend to learn best through direct experience or performing
tasks.
[REQUIRED]
Although most learners will tend to favor one learning style to some extent, learners are multimodal and able to adapt
and learn from content presented in different formats. Focusing on good instructional message design and selecting
a presentation modality that best represents the instructional content will likely serve learners better than attempting
to match different learners’ preferred modalities. [Sweller & Clark, 2006] Courses that include carefully developed
multimedia elements are often highly effective for all users, regardless of individual learning style.
Professional Development Program ♦ New York State Non-Credit Distance Learning Course Criteria Guide (rev Apr 2016)
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In many situations, the type of information being presented is
How can this
a greater indicator of delivery effectiveness than the user’s
REQUIRED criterion apply to
learning style is. In these situations, content, rather than a
correspondence courses?
specific learning style, often drives the appropriate modality
While correspondence courses, by nature,
for optimally delivering content. For example, an animated
predominantly use a visual instructional approach,
graphic (with auditory explanation) can help convey the
these courses can employ other instructional
process of developing an effective, comprehensive
approaches via the use of online resources, such
as blogs, videos, and Web-based articles; or
emergency evacuation plan for child care programs, rather
directing learners to complete tasks and report
than having learners read exclusively. Having a separate
their findings and experiences.
transcript available for multimedia elements helps learners
who prefer to read the information, or who may have hearing impairments.
In addition, generative learning (a concept originally conceived by Merlin Wittrock in the late 1970s) provides
strategies that can prompt learners to interact with content in a meaningful way (Knowlton, 2009). Generative
learning strategies are organized into four categories:
1. Recall generative strategies help learners remember important content—songs, rhymes, mnemonics, and
visual images designed to help learners “picture” items to be recalled. (Knowlton, 2009) A widely used
mnemonic for remembering the names of the Great Lakes is the acronym “HOMES” (Huron, Ontario,
Michigan, Erie, and Superior). Instructional designers can apply this concept in an early childhood context
by directing learners to read about progressive steps in helping preschoolers develop conflict resolution
skills and then prompting learners to create a mnemonic, acronym, or rhyme (perhaps simple lyrics to a
familiar tune like “Row, Row, Row the Boat”) that will help learners recall those steps. The list of steps might
be:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Approach calmly, stopping any hurtful actions
Acknowledge children’s feelings
Gather information
Restate the problem
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5. Ask for ideas for solutions and choose one together
6. Be prepared to give follow-up support
The learner would then develop a strategy for recalling this content using a song, rhyme, mnemonic, visual
image, or other helpful recall strategy.
2. Organizational generative strategies imply more than simply repeating an existing organization from a
source document. Students should impose on the content an organization that makes sense to them.
Organizational generative strategies can be text-based (constructing outlines, writing summaries, etc.) or
graphical “concept maps” (Venn diagrams, plot graphs, hand-drawn pictures, etc.). (Knowlton, 2009) In New
York State, child care providers learn about the capacity and staff/child ratio requirements in the NYS OCFS
Child Day Care Regulations, and then see this information organized into charts like “How Many Children
Can a Family Day Care Provider Care For?”
This chart helps child care providers stay within the appropriate program capacity and staff/child ratio by
providing a visual aid; however, it merely reinforces the information provided in the NYS OCFS Child Day
Care Regulations. It is still crucial that child care providers first learn and understand the regulatory
requirements for capacity and ratio for their respective modalities of care.
3. Integration is the process of connecting new information with existing knowledge. (Knowlton, 2009) This
process enables learners to build upon their existing “schemata” of knowledge, as introduced by early
childhood pioneer Jean Piaget in the early 20th Century. As learners integrate new information into their
existing knowledge, they build on that knowledge and create a personal understanding of the content.
Writing paraphrases and developing metaphors are two examples of particularly powerful integration
generative strategies. This differs from the organizational generative strategy, since summarizing (an
organizational generative strategy) emphasizes the structure of the content; paraphrasing (an integration
generative strategy) emphasizes the integrity of the content. (Knowlton, 2009)
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4. Elaboration strategies obligate leaners to connect new content with extended information—often coming in
the form of real-world events or examples. (Knowlton, 2009) Using case studies or real-life scenarios,
learners can apply what they have learned to realistic situations. An exercise using a real-life scenario
involving children’s challenging behavior can help learners identify constructive approaches, probable
outcomes, and subsequent actions that they can use in their work with children.
17. The course must be self-paced and allow learners to repeat logically sequenced
course segments as necessary.
[REQUIRED]
Creating courses that are self-paced and allow
learners to repeat course segments supports
greater content retention for learners.
Correspondence courses, by their very nature, are
self-paced; training organizations submitting
correspondence courses can indicate that their
courses meet this requirement by entering
“Correspondence Course” in the required “Location
in Course” field. (See “Distance Learning Review
Process,” Step 19, on page 34 of this guide.)
18. Activities must include constructive and timely feedback; clarification, elaboration, and
knowledge transfer; and the application of learning concepts.
[REQUIRED]
Providing learners with constructive and timely
feedback enables them to stay on track and helps
ensure they are retaining learning content
accurately.
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19. Activities should encourage and promote critical thinking and higher-ordered
reasoning abilities.
Activities that go beyond rote memorization to
direct application and the promotion of critical
thinking enable learners to apply the course
content to a variety of situations they may
encounter in their child care programs.
[OPTIONAL]
If the course contains multiple errors or instances
of non-compliance with the required criteria above,
the course may not be considered to meet the
Instructional Design and Learning Activities
criteria.
Using the Technology to Advantage
20. Distance learning courses should include a variety of relevant multimedia elements to
engage learners and accommodate different learning styles. Online learning offers
access to a broad range of multimedia materials, such as videos, audio recordings,
podcasts, and audio books.
[OPTIONAL]
There’s more to distance learning—especially online learning—than simply uploading classroom documentation.
The absence of a live trainer places a greater emphasis on designing courses specifically for the distance
learning experience, and taking into consideration the principles of effective design for optimal learning. Eight
research-based principles for the design of multimedia instruction are useful for developing distance learning
courses that provide an effective experience for learners:

Multimedia Principle: People learn better from words and pictures than from words alone. More
specifically, “people learn more or more deeply when appropriate pictures are added to text” (Mayer, 2005).
“Meaningful learning occurs when learners have to actively process information; that is, when they integrate
both words and pictures into a meaningful construction. Thus, in addition to learning through two modalities,
an integrated frame of reference is created when working with information.” (Lajoie & Nakamura, 2005)
Learning outcomes are improved only if the pictures are relevant to the subject. Images without relevance
actually interfere with learning and retention. “If instructional designers want to make a presentation more
interesting, the materials added must be directly relevant to the purpose of the instruction. Trying to spice up
the interest by adding extraneous material appears to interfere with learning and performance, rather than
embrace it.” (Fletcher & Tobias, 2005)
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Effective images enable learners to understand the basic concept of the training page or screen even before
reading the text. Images can be very effective in illustrating steps in a process, components of an overall
concept, “bite-size” chunks of complex ideas, and interactions between people or processes.


Interactivity Principle: People learn better when they can control the pace of presentation than when they
receive a continuous presentation. Interactivity is the possibility for learners to act upon the content on the
screen, and to explore it at their own pace.
Coherence Principle: People learn better when extraneous material is excluded rather than included. This
principle is supported by cognitive load theory, which “reliably predicts instructional learning outcomes by
analyzing the pedagogical materials and features of the learning environment to determine the amounts of
relevant and irrelevant load placed on working memory. Because working memory capacity is limited,
unnecessary features function as artificial constraints on the amount of mental resources that can be
directed toward the necessary semantic elements for new knowledge to be successfully acquired.” (Clark &
Feldon, 2005)
Here are some tips for maintaining coherence in online training:

o
Focus on the topic upon which the goals and objectives for the module (or overall training) are
based. Introduce only those concepts that are directly related to the goals and objectives. Ask
yourself, “What does this information have to do with the goals and objectives of this module or of
this training overall?”
o
Sometimes pertinent information is relevant, but not directly related to the goals and objectives. In
this case, include that information as a resource or related reading material.
o
Typically, the deeper the topic, the narrower the presented information should be. Provide
background information, but only to the extent of providing context or what is needed to provide a
foundation for learning deeper
topic knowledge.
o
Be careful and intentional with
the use of terminology or jargon.
Know your audience and be sure
to use language appropriate for
them. When presenting new
terminology or jargon, make sure
that new concepts are clearly
defined and that terminology is
used consistently.
Contiguity Principle: There are two
aspects of the contiguity principle—
contiguity in space (positioning) and
contiguity in time.
o
Spatial contiguity: People learn
better when printed words are
placed near the corresponding parts of the graphics.
o
Temporal contiguity: People learn better when corresponding animation and narrations are
presented simultaneously rather than successively. This corresponds to the use of graphics
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mentioned in the Multimedia Principle: The most effective graphics enable learners to understand
the concept being presented even before they read the text. When describing a process, a
corresponding animation or narration enables learners to follow along, incorporate and retain the
information more effectively. For example, when describing the process of developing an effective
evacuation route, an effective animation might visually “walk” learners through identifying the best
primary evacuation route, from any point within their program or facility to a public way or alternate
safe location.

Modality Principle: People learn better from animation with spoken text than animation with printed text.
The reason for this is that the modality of vision is already carrying the cognitive load of the animation. By
providing relevant text as narration, the learner uses the auditory channel to carry the cognitive load of the
narrated text. (This also draws on the Temporal Contiguity Principle—you cannot watch an animation and
read accompanying text at the same time.)

Signaling Principle: People learn better when the material is organized with clear outlines and headings.
These elements are known as “advance organizers,” introductory materials provided in advance of learning
that are intended to activate or provide prior knowledge relevant to the learning material. Other common
advance organizers are site maps and textual overviews, which provide a means of rendering structure
explicitly to users. This principle is related to Distance Learning Criterion #17.

Personalization Principle: People learn better from conversational style than formal style. Either text or
narration may convey a sense of social presence, the idea that someone is speaking directly to you. This
prompts the learner to have a social response to the instructional message, with increased feelings of
involvement and motivation. This principle is related to Distance Learning Criterion #10.

Redundancy Principle: People learn better when the same information is not presented in more than one
format. Redundancy occurs when the same information is presented in multiple forms or is unnecessarily
elaborated. This principle advises against providing narration that is duplicative of the printed text. (Watch
“Make the switch to Word 2010” for an example of a presentation that successfully avoids redundancy.)
Cognitive scientists have discovered three important features of the human information processing system that are
particularly relevant for multimedia users:
1. Dual Channels: People have separate information processing channels for visual material and verbal
material.
2. Limited Capacity: People can pay attention to only a few pieces of information in each channel at a time.
3. Active Processing: People understand the presented material when they pay attention to the relevant
material, organize it into a coherent mental structure, and integrate it with their prior knowledge.
This discovery has three main implications:
1. Multimedia presentations should use both visual and verbal forms of presentation.
2. Filling the screen with information will easily overload people’s cognitive systems.
3. Presentations should help learners select, organize, and integrate presented information.
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21. Learning doesn’t end when the learner completes a course. Interactive technologies
(wikis, blogs, social networks, etc.) should be used in appropriate and relevant ways
to capture the learner’s knowledge and experience, and to encourage information
exchange and collaboration among learners. Providing more interactivity in user
interfaces appears to have a substantial positive effect on learning.
[OPTIONAL]
Interactive interfaces allow learners to control,
manipulate and explore material; and periodically
ask learners to answer questions that help them
integrate the material. Interaction may be useful
because it encourages learners to elaborate more.
For this to occur, the interaction must be cognitively
engaging (e.g., not merely clicking hyperlinks). To
“elaborate” means that users take more time to
analyze and store the information. This extra
cognitive processing of information helps leaners
better integrate materials into their existing
knowledge, which helps improve learning. If there is
no instructor to review the comments posted by
learners in these interactions, a content specialist
must either review posted information (to catch
incorrect information) or read the thread regularly to
ensure that incorrect information is not being
provided.
Additional online resources can also provide
learners with avenues for enhancing and expanding
their comprehension of the topics they studied in the online course.
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Assessment
22. The course should provide multiple opportunities for self-assessment.
[OPTIONAL]
Assessment compares educational performance with educational purposes and expectations. [Astin, et al., 1991]
Self-assessment enables learners to verify the knowledge or skills they have acquired in the training—to check their
progress as they work through a course. Providing multiple opportunities for self-assessment helps learners ensure
they’re on the right track toward successful course completion.
23. All course assessments must be tied to the learning objective and provide timely
feedback to learners.
[REQUIRED]
24. The course must include a final assessment that is unique, meaning that it does not
duplicate prior learning activities or self-assessments in the course.
[REQUIRED]
A final, unique assessment, such as a final exam,
must not contain any of the questions used in
incremental self-assessments or quizzes earlier in
the course. This enables learners to apply the
knowledge they have acquired during the course
to different situations, identifying the nuances that
differentiate one situation from another, even when
those situations may share factors in common.
If the course contains multiple errors or instances of non-compliance with the required criteria above, the course may
not be considered to meet the Assessment criteria.
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Evaluation
25. Each course must include an evaluation instrument that measures learner satisfaction
with the course
[REQUIRED]
Online courses offer learners convenience and
flexibility for gaining knowledge and enhancing
their professional development. Sun, Tsai, et al.
identified seven critical factors that influence online
learners’ satisfaction: computer anxiety, instructor
attitude, course flexibility, course quality, perceived
usefulness, perceived ease of use, and diversity of
assessment. They found that course quality is the
most important concern and that technological
design plays an important role in learners’
perceived usefulness and ease of use of a course.
(Sun, Tsai, et al., 2007) Providing learners with an
opportunity to provide feedback regarding their
satisfaction with a course enables course
designers to monitor feedback trends and make
relevant revisions to courses to enhance learners’
experiences with online training.
26. Evaluation instruments should also solicit learner feedback.
[OPTIONAL]
In addition to learner satisfaction, soliciting constructive feedback from learners enables course designers to ensure
that online courses meet learners’ needs.
If the course contains multiple errors or instances of non-compliance with the required criteria above, the course may
not be considered to meet the Evaluation criteria.
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Distance Learning Review Process
All distance learning courses must be reviewed to ensure they meet all required criteria (and an appropriate
percentage of optional criteria) before learners will be able to apply distance learning courses to their regulatory
training requirement or for such courses to be eligible for EIP scholarships.
All non-credit-bearing distance learning courses must be submitted for review via the Distance Learning Review site.
The submission process includes the training organization’s verification that the submitted course meets all required
criteria and at least five (5) of the optional criteria.
In order to access the Distance Learning Review site, each Training Organization must log in with a user
name and password. The Training Organization must request a user name and password from
[email protected]. Upon receipt of this request, PDP (which administers the distance learning process and
maintains the Distance Learning Review site) will assign a unique user name and password to the Training
Organization that must be used only by that Training Organization.
Once a course is submitted for review, an assigned Distance Learning Review Committee member performs the
initial course review for distance learning courses. If any of the required criteria are not satisfied during the initial
course review, PDP will contact the training organization, which will have an opportunity to make appropriate
corrections and resubmit the course. The initial review will not continue after finding even one required criterion that
has not been met; the training organization is responsible for reviewing the entire course for compliance with all
applicable review criteria. If a training organization resubmits a course for review and any required criteria (or enough
optional criteria) remain unmet, PDP will contact the training organization again and advise the organization to revise
the course to bring it into compliance with the criteria. Training courses that fail to pass a third review may not be
resubmitted for six (6) months, and will be listed on the PDP website as “Not Approved”.
After a course has gone through the initial review, the Distance Learning Committee determines the final status of the
course, depending on whether or not the course satisfies the criteria for approval. Courses will be listed on the PDP
website, indicating whether they are “Approved” or “Not Approved”. “Approved” courses will maintain that status for
up to three (3) years; courses must be submitted for renewal 3-6 months before their “Approved” status expires in
order to be eligible for another three-year approval. Only approved distance learning courses are eligible for EIP
scholarships and the satisfaction of a child care provider’s NYS regulatory training requirement.
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Step-by-Step: Completing the Course Submission & Verification Process
The first time a training organization submits a course, the training organization’s representative will be prompted to
record information about the organization; this is only done once. All subsequent course submissions are tied to the
original training organization record. If any of the training organization information changes, a new training
organization record will need to be created. (See Steps 1 through 9 below.)
The Distance Learning Review Database provides system prompts to help training organizations navigate through
the submission process and complete the attestation that the course is 508 compliant (conforming to Section 508 of
the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, which was amended by the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 to require Federal
agencies to make their electronic and information technology [EIT] accessible to people with disabilities).
1. Click this link: http://dlreview.pdp.albany.edu/SitePages/Home.aspx, or copy and paste the URL into the
address line of an Internet browser. (This site is optimized for use with Microsoft Internet Explorer.)
The Sign In window displays. PDP will assign a user name and password for each Training
Organization. This information will be sent to the Training Organizations via email.
2. Enter your User name and Password in the corresponding fields, then click Sign In.
If you are the only user of your computer, click the Sign me in automatically checkbox to be able to
skip this step for future sessions. If you are using a shared computer, do not click this checkbox.
The Distance Learning Review  Home window displays.
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The Distance Learning Review  Home window is arranged into three main sections:



Demographic Info—This section contains information about the organization, including
contact information. If organization information changes, the organization needs to create an
updated demographic record on the Distance Learning Review site. Prior demographic
records for the organization remain on the list for historical purposes.
My Course Assessments—Use this section to enter course information. This section also
lists any courses you have saved incrementally so you can return to them later for completion
and submission. Once course information is completed and submitted, the course name
displays in the My Submitted Courses section.
My Submitted Courses—When you have completed and submitted information for a course,
the course name is listed in this section, along with the course’s review status:
o Submitted: The training organization has completed and submitted the Online Course
Self Assessment for the course.
o Threshold 1
o Threshold 2
o Threshold 3
These statuses reflect the internal Distance Learning Review
Committee review process.
o In Review
o
Committee Review: The course has been referred to the Distance Learning Review
Committee for final determination.
o
Pending: The training organization needs to complete minor revisions (as identified
by the Distance Learning Review Committee) to comply with the review criteria before
it can be approved by the Committee.
o
Approved: The course has been approved by the Distance Learning Review
Committee, but has NOT yet been posted as APPROVED to the online
OCFS Non-Credit Bearing Distance Learning Courses Listing.
o
Denied: The course has been denied by the Distance Learning Review Committee,
but has NOT yet been posted as NOT APPROVED to the online OCFS Non-Credit
Bearing Distance Learning Courses Listing.
o
Posted Approved: The course has been posted to the online OCFS Non-Credit
Bearing Distance Learning Courses Listing, with an Approval Status of APPROVED.
o
Posted Denied: The course has been posted to the online OCFS Non-Credit Bearing
Distance Learning Courses Listing, with an Approval Status of NOT APPROVED.
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3. In the Demographic Info section, click + Add new item.
The Demographic Info – New Item window displays.
The upper half of the window is used for recording your training organization’s general identification and
contact information. A series of statements displays in the lower half of the window. Read each
statement thoroughly and click the Yes checkbox for those that apply to your training organization.
Fields marked with an asterisk (*) are required.
NOTE: If your training organization’s demographic information was previously entered and HAS
NOT CHANGED, skip to Step 10.
4. Enter your training organization’s name in the Training Organization Name field.
This field is limited to 255 characters. If your Training Organization participates in EIP or Aspire, enter
your Training Organization name with the same spelling that is used in EIP or Aspire.
5. Enter your training organization’s Aspire ID, if any, in the Aspire ID field.
If you need to look up your organization’s Aspire ID, visit http://nyworksforchildren.org/aspire.aspx.
If your training organization does not have an Aspire ID, leave this field blank.
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6. Enter your organization’s mailing address in the Street 1, Street 2 (if needed), City, State, and ZIP
fields.
For Canadian addresses, enter the province abbreviation in the State field and the postal code in the
ZIP field.
7. Enter information about your organization’s contact person in the Training Organization Contact,
Contact Phone, and Contact Email fields.
The person whose contact information is entered here should be the organization’s administrative
contact person, not the contact person for a specific course.
8. Review each of the statements in the lower half of the window. Click each applicable statement’s Yes
checkbox to indicate that the statement applies to your organization. If a statement does not apply to
your organization, leave the checkbox blank.
Checkboxes noted with an asterisk (*) must be checked.

Does your organization receive federal or New York State funding?
If yes, your organization must comply with federal Section 508 Requirements.

Does your organization currently participate with the Educational Incentive Program
(EIP)?
If yes, your organization must comply with federal Section 508 Requirements.

Does your organization accept responsibility of ethical practices?

Does your organization adhere to the NAEYC Code of Ethical Conduct Supplement for
Early Childhood Adult Educators?

Does your organization foster professional relationships with learners that are supportive
of their learning needs?

Does your organization refrain from the marketing and sales of goods and services in
the training?

Does your organization agree to resubmit to PDP (Professional Development Program)
any changes made to approved courses including text or images?
9. When you have completed the Demographic Info window, click Submit.
The Distance Learning Review Home page displays, with the organization name and contact
information now displayed in the Demographic Info section. If training organization information changes,
a new Demographic Info record must be entered. (See Steps 1 through 9.)
10. To add a new course for Distance Learning Review, click My Course Assessments (the header of the
section immediately below the Demographic Info section).
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The Distance Learning Review  My Course Assessments  My Documents window displays.
11. Click the + Add document link.
The Online Course Self Assessment window displays. Fields marked with an asterisk (*) are required.
12. Enter the Course Title in the COURSE TITLE field.
This field is limited to 255 characters.
13. In the Username field, enter the user name that will enable Distance Learning Review staff to access
the course.
For correspondence courses, skip this step.
14. In the Password field, enter the password that corresponds to the user name in Step 13 to enable
reviewers to access the course.
For correspondence courses, skip this step.
15. Enter the website address for the course in the Course URL field.
For correspondence courses, skip this step.
16. In the Number of training hours field, enter the number of training hours a learner will earn for
successfully completing the course.
17. In the next section, click the applicable checkboxes to indicate which of the NYS OCFS training topics
are reflected in the course content.
You must select at least one training topic.
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18. In the next section, click the corresponding checkbox(es) for the NYS Core Body of Knowledge (CBK)
competencies (if any), that are reflected in the course content.
If you are unfamiliar with the Core Body of Knowledge, leave all CBK competencies unchecked.
19. In the Mandatory Requirements section, check each requirement (as applicable) and indicate the
section(s) of the course where that respective requirement is met.
The requirements in the “Distance Learning Criteria” section of this guide (starting on page 4) are
reflected in the Mandatory Requirements and Optional Requirements sections. Detailed information
about meeting these criteria is located in “Meeting Distance Learning Criteria” starting on page 7.
A red dotted outline around a checkbox indicates a required field.
Course location fields marked with an asterisk (*) are required fields.
When completing the “Location in Course” field, please be specific regarding the location(s) in
the course where each required criterion is met. Location can be indicated as a page number in a
correspondence course or reference book, a screen number in an online training course, or the URL
(Web address) of a course document that is available online. If a particular requirement is reflected in
multiple locations in the course, provide several examples. A hyperlink/URL to the affected online
course page can also be entered in this field in lieu of a page/screen number. The information entered
in the location fields needs to enable the Distance Learning Review Committee to access the location to
verify the respective course content and its compliance with the Distance Learning Review criteria.
(For example, a training organization whose correspondence course uses the book Caring for Our
Children as a reference might enter in this field, “Caring for Our Children [Third Edition], page 145”;
any course [online or correspondence] that uses an external website, such as Child Care Weather
Watch from the Iowa Department of Public Health, would enter the URL for that website
[https://www.idph.state.ia.us/hcci/common/pdf/weatherwatch.pdf] in this field. References to YouTube
videos would also be referenced by entering the URL for that specific video in this field.)
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20. In the Optional Requirements section, check
each requirement (as applicable) and indicate
The Location in course field is
the section of the course where that respective
limited to 255 characters.
requirement is met.
As an Optional Requirement checkbox is
selected, an accompanying Location in course field (which is required) displays. A hyperlink to the
affected online course page can also be entered in this field instead of a page/screen number.
Once all Mandatory Requirements and at least five (5) of the Optional Requirements have been
selected, the Submit button displays at the bottom of the list.
21. Review your self-assessment for accuracy and
No corrections, changes, or printing
make any necessary corrections before you
are allowed once you click the
click the Submit button. After you have made all
Submit button.
necessary corrections/changes, print a final
copy for your files.
22. Click Submit.
If the Submit button does not display at the bottom of the list, at least one of the Mandatory
Requirements has not been selected, or fewer than five (5) of the Optional Requirements have been
selected. Review the Mandatory Requirements to ensure that you have selected all of the checkboxes
and that you have completed all required Location in course fields. Then review the Optional
Requirements to ensure that you have selected at least five (5) of the checkboxes, and that you have
completed all accompanying required Location in course fields.
When you click Submit, the following message displays:
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23. Click OK.
The Distance Learning Review  My Course Assessments  My Documents window displays.
To add another course, repeat Steps 10-18.
To return to the Distance Learning Review  Home window, click Distance Learning Review in the
window header.
The course(s) you submitted will be listed in the My Submitted Courses section on the
Distance Learning Review  Home window.
24. Click Distance Learning Review in the header to display the Distance Learning Review  Home
window.
The course you submitted is listed in the My Submitted Courses section.
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What If I Need to Save a Course Incrementally and Come Back Later to
Finish and Submit?
If you need to exit the Online Course Self Assessment at any point before you’re ready to submit it (or before enough
steps have been completed to show the Submit button), you can save your work by clicking the Save button in the
upper left corner of the window.
When you click Save, the following message displays:
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Click OK to continue with saving your incremental work. The following message displays:
Be sure to type the same course name in the File name field; otherwise, duplicate records of the course will be
created. Use only valid file name characters (no special characters like # % & * : < > ? / | { } ).After entering
the file name, click Save.
To return to the Distance Learning Review  My Course Assessments  My Documents window, click the Close
button in the upper left corner (next to the Save button).
Saved courses display in the document list.
Click Distance Learning Review in the header to display the Distance Learning Review  Home window.
The course you saved is listed in the My Course Assessments section.
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What Happens After I Submit a Course?
Once you submit a course, the course is reviewed for its compliance with all of the Required criteria and at least five
(5) of the Optional criteria. PDP will contact the Training Organization with any questions or requests for clarification,
and to inform the Training Organization of the Distance Learning Review Committee’s final determination of the
course.
PDP Distance Learning Review Committee members must be able to review submitted courses just as a student
does, so links to online course content, access information (e.g., login/password credentials), etc., need to be
included in all submissions. For online courses, training organizations should assign a unique access ID for the
Distance Learning Review Committee (recommended: “DLReview” for the logon and “DLReview” for the password)
that complies with the training organization’s online course system requirements. All course materials that are not
available digitally (including correspondence courses, text books, etc.) must be mailed to:
Distance Learning Review Committee
c/o Professional Development Program
4 Tower Place, 4th Floor
Albany, NY 12203
You can check the status of a course your training organization has submitted by viewing the My Submitted
Courses section on the Distance Learning Review  Home page. Remember, you will need your user name and
password for access.
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Distance Learning Organizational or Course Changes
and Renewal
Each approved course listed on the OCFS Non-Credit Bearing Distance Learning Courses Listing has a Course
Approval Expiration Date. All courses need to go through a renewal process prior to that expiration date. If a course
expires, the course is no longer eligible to be used by New York State child day care providers to count toward their
required professional development hours, nor is the course eligible for Educational Incentive Program (EIP) funding.
The course status on the website will be changed to Not Approved the first business day following the course
expiration date.
The renewal process is designed to make each course renewal as simple as possible for the training organization
without undermining the course criteria or quality integrity of the distance learning courses. Preparing for and
following these procedures will help ensure your courses are reviewed for renewal in a timely and efficient manner.
The Training Organization (TO) bears responsibility however, for making sure the procedure is followed as required.
Questions about the process or the TO role in it should be directed to: [email protected].
Helpful hints for a successful renewal:
1. Prepare ahead of time. It may take more than five minutes to complete the Non-Credit-Bearing Distance
Learning Course Review Renewal/Update Form, particularly if there are updates/changes to your course.
Be sure to familiarize yourself with the form well in advance of the 90-day deadline.
2. Changes/updates to an already approved course can happen at any time. Training Organizations are
encouraged to update their courses as appropriate within the approval time frame, without having to wait
until the course renewal date. As long as the updates/changes continue to support the criteria for which the
course was originally approved, there should be no problems. Our common goal remains the same: to
provide the best course for child day care providers.
3. Changes/updates are not necessarily required to obtain a course renewal. The attestations must still
be met along with general information on the form. The TO will be able to renew a course twice without
making changes/updates to course(s) after the full review approval. After the second renewal, the course
will need to go through the original Distance Learning Review Process, because one of the required criteria
is the “Course content must be accurate, relevant, and up-to-date”. The full review process will assure this
criterion is met.
Procedure for Course Renewal
Most changes/updates and renewals will require the training organization to use the Non-Credit-Bearing Distance
Learning Course Review Renewal/Update Form on the Distance Learning Review site. This form is fairly
self-explanatory and should be used for the following purposes:
1. Organization/Demographic Update: If the organization’s name, address, contact, phone number or any
other administrative change occurs, complete the form and submit it to [email protected].
2. Course Content Revisions only:
a) If there is a modification or an update made to a course, the organization may not need to go through
the entire review process. Complete the form as indicated and submit it to [email protected].
Once the changes are verified and deemed valid (comply with all course criteria), the course will remain
on the website and the expiration date will remain the same.
b) If the course content revisions are substantial, the course may need to go through the full review
process. If the course is approved, a new expiration date will be designated as three (3) years from the
approval date.
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3. Course Renewal only (no changes to the course): The completed form needs to be submitted to
[email protected] 90 days prior to the expiration date listed on the OCFS Non-Credit Bearing Distance
Learning Courses Listing on the PDP website. Completing the form will provide all of the information and
attestations needed to submit the course to the Distance Learning Review Committee for a determination of
approval or non-approval. If approved, the expiration date will be extended for three (3) years from the
previous expiration date. If not approved, the expiration date will stand and the first work day after the
expiration date, the course approval status will be changed to: Not Approved.
5. Organization/Demographic Update AND Course Renewal: The form may be used for both purposes at
the same time, if needed. Complete all appropriate sections and submit the form to [email protected].
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Appendix A: Attestation for Translated Courses
Draft Language for Approving Distance Learning Courses in Languages Other than English
The OCFS Distance Learning Committee is charged with determining distance learning course compliance with
OCFS criteria for approval. To date, all courses have been submitted and reviewed in English only. There have been
a couple of Training Organizations that have indicated they have distance learning courses in languages other than
English. Due to the relatively small size of the committee, and any one member’s lack of fluency in any language
other than English, the committee will make the same determination for corresponding courses submitted in
languages other than English only if the Training Organization signs and abides by the following attestation:
I, _____________________________________________________, as an authorized representative of
(print first and last name)
___________________________________________________________, do hereby attest that the course named
(print Training Organization name)
____________________________________________________________________________________ contains
(print title of course in language other than English)
the exact content, exercises, assignments, exams/tests/quizzes, materials and evaluations as the course named
____________________________________________________________________________________.
(print title of course in English)
Please check one:
 The Training Organization listed above is the author/owner/copyright holder of the training course in English
listed above and the author/owner/copyright holder of the above-referenced training course in a language
other than English.
 The Training Organization listed above is authorized to translate the above-referenced training course in a
language other than English by the original author/owner/copyright holder of the training in English
(___________________________________________________).
(name of original author/owner/copyright holder of English course)
I also attest that if any changes are made to the course named above in English, this Training Organization will also
make the changes to the corresponding course (provided in a language other than English) named above
AND
the revised English version of the course will be re-submitted to the SUNY PDP office for the OCFS Distance
Learning Committee for review and a re-determination of approval status will be made.
It is also understood and accepted that any course determination made for the course provided in English will be the
exact determination for the corresponding course identified and provided in a language other than English.
Penalties for noncompliance of this attestation may result in the change in status of all previously approved distance
learning courses for this Training Organization to Not Approved.
I understand and agree to the above information and will follow it to the best of this Training Organization’s ability.
_________________________________________________________
Signature of Authorized Representative
____________________________
Date
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